It could be that the drivers weren't written by Sony, and the license agreement with whoever actually wrote them doesn't allow them to share the drivers. Or it could be that Sony management insists that everything be tied up with copyrights. Or maybe that's just Sony's way of telling you that they don't care whether they get your business or not. Is there a specific bit of hardware that you need drivers for? Video system? Network? ??

“If the government were coming for your TVs and cars, then you'd be upset. But, as it is, they're only coming for your sons.” - Daniel Berrigan

jimallyn wrote:It could be that the drivers weren't written by Sony, and the license agreement with whoever actually wrote them doesn't allow them to share the drivers. Or it could be that Sony management insists that everything be tied up with copyrights. Or maybe that's just Sony's way of telling you that they don't care whether they get your business or not. Is there a specific bit of hardware that you need drivers for? Video system? Network? ??

No, my laptop runs pretty good, except for the terrible battery life... I asked them beacuse I was able to see the whole set of drivers for every components on their website, but none of them was for LInux, and I asked why. If you ask me, the answer is always the same: manufacturers don't care about Linux at all, because of its very minor user quote.

Most of the time Manufacturers simply do not want to let their proprietary code out free. They see it as a money making endeavor and want to control all aspects of the code- or copy write it and retain ownership - if it's released as linux under GPL anyone can use it without paying them a cent. and anyone could incorporate their code into there own without penalty. In order to maintain their copy write status they can not allow that. Not everyone believes in open source software and from my standpoint Sony is one of the worst at this.

The firmware/driver stuff they're talking about is proprietary and closed source. Linux is mainly open source, though browsers have to have closed source components to play DRM content. Which is why chrome works with netflix but the open source version (chromium) doesn't.

And if the makers of the peripherals don't want to release their source code, you won't get the drivers.

But that doesn't mean there aren't drivers, and you usually can still configure the open source setup. Copy/paste this into the terminal and copy/paste the text output back here:

Remember, Linux drivers don't work the same way as Windows ones do. For one thing, don't install anything that isn't for your Mint release. And stay away from the Linux drivers on mfr's sites in general. They rarely work. I'm fully aware how ridiculous that sounds to Windows users but it's true.

The funny thing about all that for me is the video card in my netbook. It's the infamous Intel Cedarview gpu, one of a few that they outsourced to PowerVR. They absolutely refuse to release the source code, so 3D hardware acceleration isn't possible and probably neever will be. Fortunately, it's a netbook to kick around ... I don't use it to watch video on. And I knew what I was getting into. I've seen linux beginners on forums who had that gpu and expected to be able to watch high bit rate 1080p video.

But the funny part is that it's a rubbish video card in Windows too. One of the worst.

I think you'll be much better off in terms of battery life, if you switch to some lightweight desktop - Xfce or even better, Lxde. Next, have you checked the battery lately? I'll remind you that they lose capacity over time and after many cycles. If you don't know how, you'll find some useful info here.

I think you'll be much better off in terms of battery life, if you switch to some lightweight desktop - Xfce or even better, Lxde. Next, have you checked the battery lately? I'll remind you that they lose capacity over time and after many cycles. If you don't know how, you'll find some useful info here.

I know that my battery is quite deteriorated.

Still, the laptop consumes too much energy, especially CPU and the related fan. Perhaps you know how to check if Intel drivers are installed and functioning?

Still, the laptop consumes too much energy, especially CPU and the related fan. Perhaps you know how to check if Intel drivers are installed and functioning?

/OT

Well, if your battery's capacity has dwindled to 40-50% or more, it's clear why you have the impression that the CPU uses too much juice. No drivers can solve this no matter how good they may be at what they do. And fans may need cleaning...

Edit: besides, it appears that thermald is preinstalled in Serena (probably running in zero configuration mode) and doing everything possible to lower consumption to a minimum. A newer version came as an update today, although I don't think that your processor is supported.

Is the Laptop very old? Does it need a clean out of the heatsink/fan assembly? If you dont want to disassemble to access same then get a can of compressed air and blast it through the fan outlet with a Vacuum held against the inlet slots/holes.

eddier wrote:Is the Laptop very old? Does it need a clean out of the heatsink/fan assembly? If you dont want to disassemble to access same then get a can of compressed air and blast it through the fan outlet with a Vacuum held against the inlet slots/holes.

I opened and cleaned my laptop many times. It's totally clean on the inside. My guess is that it's a hardware-related problem, with the CPU producing too much heat.

Still, under Windows 7, the behaviour is exactly the same if not worse, so I think it's confirmed it's not related to the OS the laptop is running.

Remember, Linux drivers don't work the same way as Windows ones do. For one thing, don't install anything that isn't for your Mint release. And stay away from the Linux drivers on mfr's sites in general. They rarely work. I'm fully aware how ridiculous that sounds to Windows users but it's true.

.

I wish I had read this before I installed a generic WiFi printer driver on my "good laptop",
now it won't boot, and I can't get it to read the external USB DVD anymore so that I can reformat the hard drive.

The referred laptop is the one in my Signature, it is a brick until I figure something out.